Thursday, February 4, 2016

--Five snowmobilers were killed in an avalanche on Friday, January 30th near McBride British Columbia. To read more, click here.

--Police say a 20-year-old man died in an avalanche while snowmobiling in the Twin Lakes area Sunday afternoon. The Adams County Sheriff's Office reported the death around 2:30 p.m. Kirk Bradley Kinzer Jr., of Lewiston, was snowmobiling with family and friends north of Idaho's Brundage Ski Resort when an avalanche hit him. To read more, click here.

-- A 14-year-old girl died over the weekend in a skiing accident at Soldier Mountain. The Camas County Sheriff's Office stated that the girl was skiing down the mountain toward the lodge when at some point she lost control and crashed into the side of a restroom building and was found unconscious and not breathing. She was later flown to a Boise hospital where she died as a result of her injuries.

--If camping at The Enchantments is on your bucket list, getting to the fabled high-country lakes southwest of Leavenworth just got a little tougher. The U.S. Forest Service announced Monday it is extending by six weeks the season for required, limited-entry permits for overnight camping in this fragile zone of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. To read more, click here.

--A snowboarder survived two nights in heavy snow this weekend after he got lost in the backcountry north of the Mt. Baker Ski Area. To read more, click here.

--Squaw Valley is taking a bold initiative to reduce the amount of garbage produced by the resort by prohibiting bottled water sales and installing 20 water refill stations around the mountain. Squaw expects to eliminate as many as 28,000 single-use plastic bottles a year with this simple step towards environmentally friendly hydration. To read more, click here.

--The Inyo County Board of Supervisors hasn’t taken a stand on the new Wilderness Areas proposed in the Inyo National Forest Plan, but they did approve of the process used to arrive at the initial draft. To read more, click here.

Desert Southwest:

--The best climbing festival of the year is now accepting registrations. Red Rock Rendezvous will run from April 1-3. Come on out to Vegas and get your climb on! To read more, click here.

Notes from All Over:
--Summit County Search and Rescue crews, joined by ski patrol members, found the body of a skier who had been missing from the Park City resort area since Sunday night. The skier — 50-year-old Stephen Jones — had been involved in an avalanche, according to a tweet from the Summit County Sheriff's Office. At about 2 p.m. Tuesday, searchers found his body buried in about three feet of snow in an area called Shale Shot in Lambs Canyon. To read more, click here.

--Officials say a Massachusetts ice climber was rescued from a New Hampshire Mountain after he fell about 20 feet. The Concord Monitor reports Peter Lindahl, of Medford, Massachusetts fell Sunday afternoon around 1 p.m. near Crawford Notch State Park in Hart's Location. He was climbing on Mount Willard when it happened. To read more, click here.

-- A man ice climbing at Frankenstein Cliffs in New Hampshire has been taken to a hospital after he fell about 30 feet and was rescued by other climbers and emergency responders. To read more, click here.

--A crazy video was posted last week of some hikers on South America's Aconcagua crossing what appears to be a minor debris flow. Suddenly, they hear a sound similar to that of an airplane and quickly move out of the way. The debris flow turns into a massive wall of rocks sliding down the drainage. The take-away is not to treat these types of things as minor. If something seems off, move quickly or stay away from it... To see the video, click below. To read more, click here.

--Two people were taken to the hospital after an accident on the ski lift at New Hampshire's Granite Gorge Ski Area Sunday afternoon. To read more, click here.

--So, a skier in Alberta was attacked by an owl this week. He has multiple punctures in his scalp. After the incident he resolves to wear a helmet now. To read more, click here.

--Climbing magazine's 2015 Golden Piton Awards have been awarded. To see who won, click here.

--In the mounting battle to keep public lands in public hands, certain voices have been louder than others. Private interests, including those heavily backed by oil and gas - have been vocal that our public lands should be privatized, allowing those groups to sidestep environmental regulations to allow for increased mining, timber, and real estate development. Tens of thousands of Americans who love public lands have also spoken out against the effort to seize and sell off our parks, forests, and open spaces, seeking continued protection of the wild places to enjoy. Often forgotten in this fight, however, are the thousands of public servants who have dedicated their lives to caring for these places and ensuring balance in how we care for our millions of acres of American public lands. To read more, click here.

--Following on from its popular appearance in the Olympic Park at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, ice climbing will feature as part of the sports initiation program at the 2nd edition of the Youth Olympic Games to be held in Lillehammer, Norway, from 12-21 February. To read more, click here.

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Climbing, skiing and mountaineering are dangerous sports. When you undertake an outdoor, backcountry, or an alpine adventure without a guide, you assume total responsibility for your decisions and wellbeing. Conditions in the mountains are constantly changing, and no guidebook or computer web blog can take the place of solid training and experience. Though this site features descriptions of roads, trails, climbing routes, and other natural features, you cannot assume that because something is described here that it has not changed since last observed or that it will be safe for you or your party.
AAI assumes no responsibility or liability for your use of the information presented in this blog. With regard to all backcountry travel and climbing, you must make your own assessments and decisions, and you assume all risks in applying them.